Names of the Serbs
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Names of the Serbs and Serbia are terms and other designations referring to general
terminology Terminology is a group of specialized words and respective meanings in a particular field, and also the study of such terms and their use; the latter meaning is also known as terminology science. A ''term'' is a word, compound word, or multi-wor ...
and
nomenclature Nomenclature (, ) is a system of names or terms, or the rules for forming these terms in a particular field of arts or sciences. The principles of naming vary from the relatively informal naming conventions, conventions of everyday speech to the i ...
on the
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
( sr, Срби, Srbi, ) and
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
( sr, Србија/Srbija, ). Throughout history, various endonyms and exonyms have been used in reference to ethnic Serbs and their lands. Basic terms, used in
Serbian language Serbian (, ) is the standardized variety of the Serbo-Croatian language mainly used by Serbs. It is the official and national language of Serbia, one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina and co-official in Montenegro and Kos ...
, were introduced via classical languages ( Greek and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
) into other languages, including
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
. The process of interlingual transmission began during the early medieval period, and continued up to the modern times, being finalized in major international languages at the beginning of the 20th century.


Etymology

The ethnonym is mentioned in the Middle Ages as ''Cervetiis'' (''Servetiis''), ''gentis (S)urbiorum'', ''Suurbi'', ''Sorabi'', ''Soraborum'', ''Sorabos'', ''Surpe'', ''Sorabici'', ''Sorabiet'', ''Sarbin'', ''Swrbjn'', ''Servians'', ''Sorbi'', ''Sirbia, Sribia, Zirbia, Zribia'', ''Suurbelant'', ''Surbia'', ''Serbulia'' (or ''Sorbulia''), among others. There exist two prevailing theories on the origin of the ethnonym ''*Sŕbъ'' (plur. ''*Sŕby''), one from a
Proto-Slavic language Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately from the 2nd millennium B.C. through the 6th ...
and another from an Iranian-Sarmatian language. Other derivations like from Old
Indic Indic may refer to: * Indic languages (disambiguation) * Various scripts: ** Brahmic scripts, a family of scripts used to write Indian and other Asian languages ** Kharosthi (extinct) * Indian numerals * Indian religions, also known as the Dharmic ...
('fight, cut, kill'), ('make up, constitute'), and el, siro (, 'repeat') are considered unreliable. The most prominent theory considers it of Proto-Slavic origin. According to , who also argued native Slavic provenance of the ethnonym, the theory advances a conclusion that the ethnonym has a meaning of a family kinship or alliance, and it is argued by Pavel Jozef Šafárik, , Aleksander Brückner, Franz Miklosich,
Jan Otrębski Jan Szczepan Otrębski (8 December 188926 April 1971) was a Polish philologist, linguist, and author of 350 scientific papers in the field of Slavic and Baltic studies. He is particularly noted for his study of the Lithuanian language. He held th ...
, Heinz Schuster-Šewc, ,
J. J. Mikkola Jooseppi Julius (J. J.) Mikkola (July 6, 1866, Ylöjärvi – September 28, 1946, Helsinki), was Finnish linguist and professor. Mikkola is regarded as one of the most important Finnish linguists of Slavic languages of his era. Biography Mikkola ...
, Max Vasmer, among others. German-Sorbian scholar Schuster-Šewc listed the ''*srъb-'' / ''*sьrb-'' roots in Slavic words meaning "to sip, munch", found in Polish ''s(i)erbać'', Russian ''сербать'', etc., and also cognates in non-Slavic languages, such as Lithuanian ''suřbti'', Middle German ''sürfen'', which all derive from Indo-European onomatopoeic roots ''*serbh-'' / ''*sirbh-'' / ''*surbh-'' meaning "to sip, to breast-feed, to flow". According to him, the basis of the ethnonym lays in " kinship by milk" and "brotherhood in milk" which was widespread in early ethnic groups (between both relatives and non-relatives) and thus carried the secondary meanings of "those who belong to the same family, kinsman"; "member of the same kin, tribe"; and finally an ethnonym (name of a people, nation). According to Vasmer's etymological dictionary, the root *sъrbъ is most probably connected with Russian ''paserb'' (пасерб, "stepson") and Ukrainian ''priserbitisya'' (присербитися, "join in") in the meaning of "alliance".
Zbigniew Gołąb Zbigniew Gołąb (16 March 1923, in Nowy Targ – 24 March 1994, in Chicago) was a Polish-American linguist and Slavist. He was described as "one of the world's greatest experts on the Macedonian language and the leading expert on Macedonian– ...
similarly derived it from Proto-Indo-European in the meaning of "outgrowth, member of the family".
Stanisław Rospond Stanisław Rospond (December 19, 1906 – October 16, 1982) was a Polish linguist, and professor at the University of Wroclaw A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in se ...
derived the denomination of ''Srb'' from ''srbati'' ( cf. ''sorbo'', ''absorbo''), and Proto-Indo-European base ''*serpłynąć'' as a possible reference to the humid areas inhabited by the same people, which was also argued by
Stanisław Kozierowski Stanisław Kozierowski (1874 – 1949) was a Polish Catholic priest and historian. Biography Kozierowski was born in Tremessen (Province of Posen, Imperial Germany)(today Trzemeszno, Poland). He was a Catholic priest, professor and co-founder ...
. Another theory considers it of Iranian origin.
Oleg Trubachyov Oleg Nikolayevich Trubachyov (also transliterated as Trubachev or Trubačev, russian: Оле́г Никола́евич Трубачёв; 23 October 1930, in Stalingrad – 9 March 2002, in Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian linguist. A res ...
derived it from Indo-Aryan ''*sar-'' (head) and ''*bai-'' (to hit), or assumed Scythian form ''*serv'' that in Old Indian ''sarva'' has a meaning of "all" which has a semantic analogy in Germanic
Alemanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...
. There are also those like J. Nalepa who related the ethnonym of the Serbs and Croats, and derived Slavic ''sьrbъ'' and ''Serboi'' (Σέρβοι) from Indo-European ''*ser-v-'' (to protect) which had an equivalent in classical Scythian language, ''*хаrv-'', from which presumably derived the Slavic ethnonym ''*хṛvati'' (Croats). However, this theory is rejected by some Ukrainian scholars, and Russian linguists like Vyacheslav Ivanov and
Vladimir Toporov Vladimir Nikolayevich Toporov (russian: Влади́мир Никола́евич Топоро́в; 5 July 1928 in Moscow5 December 2005 in Moscow) was a leading Russian philologist associated with the Tartu-Moscow semiotic school. His wife was ...
. Such scholars claim the Serbs are unrelated to the East Slavs and, in their view, the scholarship clearly shows that the origin and meaning of the Serbian ethnonym is distant from the Croatian ethnonym.


Endonym

The earliest mention of the Serbs in the Balkans appears to be from
Einhard Einhard (also Eginhard or Einhart; la, E(g)inhardus; 775 – 14 March 840) was a Frankish scholar and courtier. Einhard was a dedicated servant of Charlemagne and his son Louis the Pious; his main work is a biography of Charlemagne, the ''Vita ...
's '' Royal Frankish Annals'', written in 822 AD, when prince
Ljudevit Ljudevit () is a Croatian masculine given name. The name comes from the word ''ljudi'', meaning ''people''. The name Ljudevit is also used as a translation of foreign names such as Ludwig or Louis. Ljudevit may refer to: * Ljudevit (Lower Pannon ...
went from his seat at
Sisak Sisak (; hu, Sziszek ; also known by other alternative names) is a city in central Croatia, spanning the confluence of the Kupa, Sava and Odra rivers, southeast of the Croatian capital Zagreb, and is usually considered to be where the Posavin ...
to the Serbs (believed to have been somewhere in western Bosnia). Einhard mentions "the Serbs, a people that is said to hold a large part of
Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...
" ( la, ad Sorabos, quae natio magnam Dalmatiae partem obtinere dicitur). , written by Byzantine emperor
Constantine VII Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe Kar ...
in the mid-10th century, tells a version of the early history of the Serbs. He mentions
White Serbia White Serbia ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Бела Србија, Bela Srbija; wen, Biеło Srbsko), called also Boiki ( grc, Βοΐκι, Boḯki; sr-Cyrl-Latn, link=no, Бојка, Bojka; wen, links=no, Boika), is the name applied to the assumed homeland of ...
(or ''Boiki''), from whence migrated the
White Serbs The Sorbs, also known as White Serbs in Serbian historiography, were an Early Slavic tribe settled between Saale-Elbe valley up to Lusatian Neisse (in present-day Saxony and Thuringia), and part of the Wends. In the 7th century, the tribe joined ...
. The emperor contended that their name in the tongue of the Romans means a "servant"; because of which the signifies 'menial shoes', while is for those who wear poor man's footwear; and additionally, that the region or town of Servia (''Serblia'') near
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
received its name from the Serbs who once lived there. This derivation is
false etymology A false etymology (fake etymology, popular etymology, etymythology, pseudo-etymology, or par(a)etymology) is a popular but false belief about the origin or derivation of a specific word. It is sometimes called a folk etymology, but this is also a ...
(a paraetymology), and the account's reliability is also disputed. Some scholars argue that the Serb ethnonym is antique. According to this theory, it is connected to the mentions of
Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historiography, Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his t ...
in 50 AD,
Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
in 77 AD ('' Naturalis Historia'') and
Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
in his ''Geography'' 2nd century AD, of the Sarmatian tribe of Serboi of the North
Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
and Lower
Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...
.
Đorđe Branković Đorđe Branković ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе Бранковић; anglicized as ''George''; also known as Saint Maksim; b. 1461 – d. 1516) was the last male member of the Branković dynasty, and titular Despot of Serbia from 1486 to 1497. The titl ...
(1645–1711), in his ''Chronicles'', wrote: "The Serbian name comes from the Savromat name, as
Philipp Melanchthon Philip Melanchthon. (born Philipp Schwartzerdt; 16 February 1497 – 19 April 1560) was a German Lutheran reformer, collaborator with Martin Luther, the first systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation, intellectual leader of the Lu ...
testifies... According to a second version the Serbian name comes from the Sires people who used to live in the Asian part of
Scythia Scythia (Scythian: ; Old Persian: ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) or Scythica (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ), also known as Pontic Scythia, was a kingdom created by the Scythians during the 6th to 3rd centuries BC in the Pontic–Caspian steppe. His ...
. Among the Sires, wool grew in the same way as silk". In 1878, Henry Hoyle Howorth connected Ptolemy's mention of the town of
Serbinum Serbinum, also known as Servitium or Servicium, was an ancient Roman city in the province of Pannonia. It was situated in the location of present-day Gradiška in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sources *In Ptolemy’s Geography from the 2nd ...
(Σέρβινον), modern Gradiška, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to the Serbs, and also found the Serb ethnonym ''Cervetiis'' (''Servetiis'') in the works of
Vibius Sequester Vibius Sequester (active in the 4th or 5th century AD) is the Latin author of lists of geographical names. Work ''De fluminibus, fontibus, lacubus, nemoribus, gentibus, quorum apud poëtas mentio fit'' is made up of seven alphabetical lists of ...
. In ''De Bello Gothico'' Procopius (500-565) uses the name ''
Sporoi Sporoi ( el, Σπόροι) or Spori was according to Eastern Roman scholar Procopius (500–560) the old name of the Antes and Sclaveni, two Early Slavic branches. Procopius stated that the Sclaveni and Antes spoke the same language, but he did no ...
'' as an umbrella term for the Slavic tribes of Antes and
Sclaveni The ' (in Latin) or ' (various forms in Greek, see below) were early Slavic tribes that raided, invaded and settled the Balkans in the Early Middle Ages and eventually became the progenitors of modern South Slavs. They were mentioned by early Byz ...
, it is however not known whether the Slavs used this designation for themselves or he himself coined the term. It has been theorized by the older generation of scholars that the name is a corruption of the ethnonym ''Serbs'',Elements of Ethnic Identification of the Serbs
By Danijela Gavrilović. ''Facta Universitatis''. Series: Philosophy, Sociology and Psychology Vol. 2, n° 10, 2003, pp. 717 - 730.
as ''Sporoi'' may be identical with 'Sorpi=Serpi=Serbi' and 'Sclavini'.


Exonyms

During the medieval and early modern period, several exonyms were used as designations for Serbs and Serbia. ;Rascia and Rasciani Since the late 12th century, the term ''Rascia'' (), with several variants (Rasscia, Rassia, Rasia, Raxia), was used as an
exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
for Serbia in Latin sources, along with other names such as ''Servia'', ''Dalmatia'' and ''Slavonia''. It was derived from the town of
Ras Ras or RAS may refer to: Arts and media * RAS Records Real Authentic Sound, a reggae record label * Rundfunk Anstalt Südtirol, a south Tyrolese public broadcasting service * Rás 1, an Icelandic radio station * Rás 2, an Icelandic radio stati ...
, a royal estate, and seat of an eparchy. The first attestation is in a charter from Kotor dated to 1186, in which Stefan Nemanja, the Grand Prince (1166–1196), is mentioned as "'' župan'' of Rascia". It was one of the common names for Serbia in western sources (
Papacy The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
, Italian, German, French, etc.), often in conjunction with ''Serbia'' (''Servia et Rascia''). "Rascia" was never used in Byzantine works. The term is often used in modern historiography to refer to the medieval "Serbian hinterland" or "inner Serbia", that is, the inland territories in relation to the maritime principalities at the Adriatic (the " Pomorje"). The term is attested since the late 12th century, but in historiography, the early medieval Serbian Principality is sometimes also called ''Raška'' (Rascia), erroneously (and anachronistically). In DAI, the Serbian hinterland is called "baptized Serbia", while Ras is only mentioned as a border town. The misconceptions arose from the much later '' Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja'', that projected later terminology on earlier periods. In historical reality of the early medieval period, the city of Ras became a local administrative center only in 970-975, when Byzantines created a short-lived
Catepanate of Ras The Catepanate of Ras (Byzantine Greek: ) was a province ( catepanate) of the Byzantine Empire, established around 971 in central regions of early medieval Serbia, during the rule of Byzantine Emperor John Tzimiskes (969–976). The catepanate ...
. In 1019, the Eparchy of Ras was organized, with jurisdiction over eastern parts of inner Serbia, and thus the foundation was laid for gradual emergence of a regional name, derived from Ras. Retaking the city of Ras from Byzantines, local Serbian rulers made it one of their main seats, and since it was also a seat of a local bishop of Ras, it gradually became the most important center of inner Serbia. By the end of the 12th century, term Raška (Rascia) became common designation for central parts of inner Serbia, and it was also used to designate the state centered in that region, namely the Serbian state of the
Nemanjić dynasty The House of Nemanjić ( sr-Cyrl, Немањић, Немањићи; Nemanjić, Nemanjići, ) was the most prominent dynasty of Serbia in the Middle Ages. This princely, royal, and later imperial house produced twelve Serbian monarchs, who rul ...
. Between the 15th and 18th centuries, the term ( la, Rascia, hu, Ráczság) was used to designate the southern Pannonian Plain inhabited by Serbs, or " Rascians" ( la, Rasciani, Natio Rasciana, hu, Rác(ok)), who had settled there following the Ottoman conquests and
Great Serb migrations The Great Migrations of the Serbs ( sr, Велике сеобе Срба), also known as the Great Exoduses of the Serbs, refers mainly to two large migrations of Serbs from various territories under the rule of the Ottoman Empire to regions u ...
. ;Other medieval exonyms *The Serbs were often called "Triballi" in Byzantine works. The ''
Triballi The Triballi ( grc, Τριβαλλοί, Triballoí, lat, Triballi) were an ancient people who lived in northern Bulgaria in the region of Roman Oescus up to southeastern Serbia, possibly near the territory of the Morava Valley in the late Iron A ...
'' was an ancient Thracian tribe that inhabited the area of the Morava Valley in southern Serbia. They were last mentioned in the 3rd century. The educated Byzantine authors sought an ancient name for the Serbs, and adopted it as the most likely. It was in use between the 11th and 15th century. *In the Byzantine chronicle ''
Alexiad The ''Alexiad'' ( el, Ἀλεξιάς, Alexias) is a medieval historical and biographical text written around the year 1148, by the Byzantine princess Anna Komnene, daughter of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. It was written in a form of artificial ...
'', covering the 11th century (written in 1148), Anna Komnene mentions the Serbs by the names ''Sklaveni'' and ''Dalmati'' (Δαλμάται, ''Dalmatai''), with ''Dalmatia'' starting from
Kosovo and Metohija The Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija ( sr, Косово и Метохиja, Kosovo i Metohija; sq, Kosova dhe Metohija), commonly known as Kosovo and abbreviated to Kosmet or KiM, is an autonomous province defined by the constituti ...
. John Kinnamos, in his work covering 1118–76, wrote: "the Serbs, a Dalmatic (Dalmatian) tribe" ( gr, Σέρβιοι, έθνος Δαλματικόν), thus using "Dalmat(ian)s" or "Dalmatic (Dalmatian) people" in the context of the Serbs, and "Dalmatia" in the context of Serbia. There are numerous other, less prominent, instances, poetic for example —
Theodore Prodromus Theodore Prodromos or Prodromus ( el, Θεόδωρος Πρόδρομος; c. 1100 – c. 1165/70), probably also the same person as the so-called Ptochoprodromos (Πτωχοπρόδρομος "Poor Prodromos"), was a Byzantine Greek writer, wel ...
, Michael Italicus and the typikon of the Pantokrator monastery, among others. ;Early modern exonyms *"
Vlachs "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...
", referring to pastoralists, was a common exonym for Serbs in the Ottoman Empire and later. The term "Vlachs" was also used for Slavs who shared lifestyle (as shepherds) with Romance peoples (''
Vlachs "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...
''); it was used for the Serbs who settled the Military Frontier. Documents of the 13th–15th century show that Vlachs, the descendants of indigenous peoples, were considered by Serbs as "other", and distinct from themselves. How Serbs perceived these differences or their basis for "othering" is largely unknown, as very little evidence survives. There were specific and separate regulations for Serbs and Vlachs, however, which included prohibition on intermarriage. Croatian nationalist historiography (including Ustashe propaganda) claim that the settlers were not Serbs, but ethnic Vlachs, thus implying that Serbs of Croatia are not Serbs. All South Slavic ethnic groups had some Romance ingredient, although there is no evidence that all or most Serbs in Croatia were of Vlach origin. In Bosnia, Orthodox Christians were called "Vlachs", actually used as a synonym of "Serbs". It was used as a derogatory term, and as a common name for Orthodox Serbs in Catholic lands, and lesser in the Ottoman Empire.
Tihomir Đorđević Tihomir Đorđević (Knjaževac, Principality of Serbia, 19 February 1868 — Belgrade, Kingdom of Yugoslavia, 28 May 1944) was a Serbian ethnologist, folklorist, cultural historian and professor at the University of Belgrade. Biography He rece ...
(1868–1944), as did other academics, stressed that the name "Vlach" did not only refer to genuine
Vlachs "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...
(Romance-speaking people), but also to cattle breeders in general. Serbs that took refuge in the Habsburg
Military Frontier The Military Frontier (german: Militärgrenze, sh-Latn, Vojna krajina/Vojna granica, Војна крајина/Војна граница; hu, Katonai határőrvidék; ro, Graniță militară) was a borderland of the Habsburg monarchy and l ...
were called "Vlachs" by the Croats. In the work ''About the Vlachs'' (1806), Metropolitan
Stevan Stratimirović Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...
stated that Roman Catholics from Croatia and Slavonia scornfully used the name "Vlach" for "the Slovenians (Slavs) and Serbs, who are of our, Eastern rthodoxconfession", and that "the Turks (Muslims) in Bosnia and Serbia also call every Bosnian or Serbian Christian a Vlach". That the name "Vlach" used to signify the Serbs is testified by Vuk Karadžić in his many recorded proverbs. The term may have originated from Stari Vlah, from where refugees arrived in what was then the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
. *In Dalmatia, terms used for Serbs were: "
Morlachs Morlachs ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Morlaci, Морлаци or , ; it, Morlacchi; ro, Morlaci) has been an exonym used for a rural Christian community in Herzegovina, Lika and the Dalmatian Hinterland. The term was initially used for a bilingual Vlach p ...
" (''Morlaci''), "Vlachs" (''Vlasi''), ''Rkaći'', ''Rkači'', "Greek Dalmatians" (''Garčki Dalmatini''), or "Greek people". The Catholics used the pejorative word ''rkać'', derived from Venetian, for Orthodox people. The terms ''Rišćani'', ''Rkaći'' (''Grkaći''), ''Morlaci'' (''crni Vlasi''), were used for primitive shepherds, Serbs, who moved in Bukovica, and mountain pastures on the border of Lika (Velebit) and Bosnia (Dinara). *''Illyrians'' ( la, Illyrii), or the ''Illyrian nation'' ( la, Natio Illyrica): During the early modern period, Serbs were also referred to as ''Illyrians'', most commonly by the state administration of the
Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
. Since the end of the 17th century, those
archaic Archaic is a period of time preceding a designated classical period, or something from an older period of time that is also not found or used currently: *List of archaeological periods **Archaic Sumerian language, spoken between 31st - 26th cent ...
terms were used in a classicizing manner, as a historical reference for geographical position of Serbian homeland in regions that were formerly covered by the ancient Illyricum. Among official documents that used such terminology was the '' Declaratory Rescript of the Illyrian Nation'' ( la, Rescriptum Declaratorium Illyricae Nationis), issued in 1779 by Empress
Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' (in her own right). ...
in order to regulate several questions related to position of the Serbian Orthodox
Metropolitanate of Karlovci The Metropolitanate of Karlovci ( sr, Карловачка митрополија, Karlovačka mitropolija) was a metropolitanate of the Eastern Orthodox Church that existed in the Habsburg monarchy between 1708 and 1848. Between 1708 and 1713 ...
.


Misnaming

Because of a confusion of ethnicity/nationality with religious affiliation, many authors from historic times referred to and recorded Serbs by the following names: *by the major regional names of: Bosnians, Herzegovinians, Krajishniks and Slavonians.


Pejorative

*
Serbomans Serbomans (Serbo-Croatian and mk, србомани, srbomani; bg, сърбомани, sarbomani; ro, sârbomani) is a Bulgarian pejorative term used by Bulgarian nationalists for inhabitants in the region of Macedonia that claimed Serbian ethnic ...
, Serbs in Bulgaria * Raci, Serbs in Austro-Hungary * Tschusch, Serbs in Austria * Vlach, Serbs in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina *
Shkije Shkije or Shkje, is a pejorative term used in the Gheg dialect of Albanian to refer to non-Albanians such as Serbs, Macedonians, Montenegrins, Greeks, Italians, and to a lesser extent Croats and Bosniaks. The Arvanites in Greece use the version ...
, in Kosovo and Metochia and Albania


Anthroponymy

;Male given names Srba, Srbislav, Srbivoje, Srbko, Srboje, Srbomir, Srborad, Srbomil, Srboljub, Srbobran. ;Female given names Srbijanka, Srbinka, and others. ;Surnames Srbinac, Srbinić, Srbinov, Srbinovac, Srbinović, Srbinovski, Srbić, Srbović, Srbljanović, Srbljanin, Srbljak, Srpčić, Serban, and others.


Toponymy

There are many toponyms that are supposedly related to endonyms and exonyms for Serbs.


Historical

* Gordoservon/Servochoria, in
Phrygia In classical antiquity, Phrygia ( ; grc, Φρυγία, ''Phrygía'' ) was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now Asian Turkey, centered on the Sangarios River. After its conquest, it became a region of the great empires ...
of
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
(modern central Turkey) (Early Middle Ages) * Novaya Serbiya, military province in
Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...
(modern Ukraine) (1752–1764) * Slavyanoserbiya, military province in Imperial Russia (modern Ukraine) (1753–1764) *
Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sh, Република Српска Крајина, italics=no / or РСК / ''RSK'', ), known as the Serbian Krajina ( / ) or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, ...
(Republika Srpska Krajina)


Renderings in other languages

Historical renderings in other languages: *Servii, Latin rendering. **Serviani/Servians, medieval French and English rendering of the Serbs. Modern renderings in other languages: *Macedonian, Montenegrin, Bosnian, Slovak and Slovene: Srbi (Срби) * be, Сербы, bg, Сърби, it, Serbi, mt, Serbi, uk, Серби, la, Serbi : Serbi * ar, صرب *Simplified *Traditional * cs, Srbové * cy, Serbiaid *german: Serben * et, Serblased * el, Σέρβοι (Servi) * es, Serbios * eo, Serboj *french: Serbes * ko, 세르비아인 * he, סרבים * hi, सर्ब लोग * os, Сербаг адæм * ka, სერბები * lt, Serbai * hu, Szerbek * nl, Serviërs / Serven" * ja, セルビア人 * no, Serbere * pl, Serbowie * pt, Sérvios * ro, Sârbi *russian: Сербы * sq, Serbët * cu, Срь́би * fi, Serbit * sv, Serber * tt-Cyrl, Серблар * tr, Sırplar


See also

*
Serbian names This article features the naming culture of personal names of ethnic Serbs and the Serbian language. Serbian names are rendered in the "Western name order" with the surname placed after the given name. "Eastern name order" may be used when multi ...
*
Serbians The term Serbians in English is a polysemic word, with two distinctive meanings, derived from morphological differences: * Morphology 1: Serb-ian- s, derived from the noun ''Serb'' and used interchangeably to refer to ethnic Serbs, thus having ...


Notes


References

{{Reflist, 25em


Sources

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